Hours after a massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake struck near the Russian coast, becoming one of the strongest tremors ever recorded, tsunami waves arrived in Hawaii and the U.S. West Coast following efforts to get hundreds of thousands away from coastlines and to higher ground.

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The year’s strongest earthquake struck off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula, triggering tsunami warnings and advisories in Hawaii, California, Oregon and Washington.

Tsunami waves have hit nations across the Pacific after a massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake struck off Russia’s remote east coast Wednesday local time, with millions of people urged to evacuate to higher ground.

An Oregon geophysicist noted that, while Wednesday's quake was big, it wasn't "really, really, really big," and that might have made the difference.

One of the most powerful earthquakes in modern history shook Russia’s remote east coast Wednesday, sending tsunami waves hurtling across the Pacific Ocean and putting nations from Japan to the United States to Chile on high alert with millions urged to evacuate.